Churchgoers gathered at St. Thomas Catholic Church Friday afternoon for a Good Friday celebration.The holiday, which falls on the Friday before Easter Sunday, is devoted

THE BRONX - Churchgoers gathered at St. Thomas Catholic Church Friday afternoon for a Good Friday celebration.

The holiday, which falls on the Friday before Easter Sunday, is devoted to the passion and sufferings of Jesus Christ. Dozens of churchgoers were there to commemorate Christ?s crucifixion.

A man playing the role of Christ was paraded down Crotona Parkway with his head hung low and blood on his body as part of a procession to reenact the Easter story. Stations set up along the route marked different parts of Jesus? last day.

Churchgoers say the celebration marks the triumph over persecution and death and the right to eternal life. ?The lesson of all this for you to have faith and hope and just to believe in him,? churchgoer Stephanie Negron says.

The procession ended right where it began, inside the church with the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Churchgoers say seeing the procession makes it easier to understand the meaning of Easter.